5 ms·Protected from me patenting it and then suing small companies that use it.by HarrietJones 12y agoProtected from me patenting it and then suing small companies that use it.dalke 12y agoYou can't patent something that someone else published.warfangle 12y agofunny joke ;)dalke 12y ago... any more than you can patent something which has already been patented. Both require a lawsuit to challenge.